ABAINZA, SHAIRA LYNN M.

BSHM 2B2
Module on Climatic Change

Assignment:

1. How are rising sea levels already influencing different regions?

ANWERS: Global sea level has been rising over the past century, and the rate has
increased in recent decades. In 2014, global sea level was 2.6 inches above the 1993
average—the highest annual average in the satellite record (1993-present). Sea level
continues to rise at a rate of about one-eighth of an inch per year. Higher sea levels
mean that deadly and destructive storm surges push farther inland than they once did,
which also means more frequent nuisance flooding. Disruptive and expensive, nuisance
flooding is estimated to be from 300 percent to 900 percent more frequent within U.S.
coastal communities than it was just 50 years ago.

2. What is the contribution of seawater thermal expansion to recent sea-level rise?

Between 1993 and 2018, thermal expansion of the oceans contributed 42% to sea level
rise; the melting of temperate glaciers, 21%; Greenland, 15%; and Antarctica, 8%.
Climate scientists expect the rate to further accelerate during the 21st century.
Projecting future sea level is challenging, due to the complexity of many aspects of the
climate system. As climate research into past and present sea levels leads to improved
computer models, projections have consistently increased. For example, in 2007 the
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) projected a high end estimate of
60 cm (2 ft) through 2099, but their 2014 report raised the high-end estimate to about
90 cm (3 ft).
3. What is the contribution of melting ice sheets compared to other sources of sea-level
rise?
Global sea level rose by about 120 meters during the several millennia that followed the
end of the last ice age (approximately 21,000 years ago), and stabilized between 3,000
and 2,000 years ago. Sea level indicators suggest that global sea level did not change
significantly from then until the late 19th century when the instrumental record of sea
level change shows evidence for an onset of sea level rise. In the mid-19th century, the
rate of sea level rise probably started exceeding the mean rate from the previous 2,000
years. Satellite altimetry observations, available since the early 1990s, provide more
accurate sea level data with nearly global coverage and indicate that since 1993 sea
level has been rising at a rate of about 3 millimeters per year.
4. How much is the sea level projected to increase during the twenty-first century?
"Professor Niklas Mörner, who has been studying sea level for a third of a century, says it is
physically impossible for sea level to rise at much above its present rate, and he expects 4-8
inches of sea level rise this century, if anything rather below the rate of increase in the last
century. In the 11,400 years since the end of the last Ice Age, sea level has risen at an average of
 4 feet/century, though it is now rising much more slowly because very nearly all of the land-
based ice that is at low enough latitudes and altitudes to melt has long since gone." Sea levels
are rising due to thermal expansion and melting of land-based ice. Global warming is causing the
oceans to absorb a lot of extra heat (up to 90%). This makes the volume of water expand, and
sea levels rise. The Greenland and Antarctic ice caps, and many of the world’s glaciers, are all
slowly melting.
5. What human-environment interactions affects the food production systems and how
food systems in general face adversity?
ANSWER: Food consumption and production have a considerable impact on the
environment. ... Food production contributes, for example, to climate change,
eutrophication and acid rain, as well as the depletion of biodiversity. It is also a
considerable drain on other resources, such as nutrients, land area, energy, and water.
Activity:
Work together to summarize regional effects of climate change and other environmental
issues to:
1. Agriculture, water availability, and the effects of climate change and other
environmental change on their region.
ANSWER: Agriculture is an important sector of the U.S. economy. The crops, livestock, and
seafood produced in the United States contribute more than $300 billion to the economy each
year. When food-service and other agriculture-related industries are included, the agricultural
and food sectors contribute more than $750 billion to the gross domestic product. Agriculture
and fisheries are highly dependent on the climate. Increases in temperature and carbon
dioxide (CO2) can increase some crop yields in some places.
2. Discuss storm hazards and risk in the context of two cases studies: Super storm like
Typhoon Yolanda.
Answer: Typhoon Yolanda devastated the Philippines, ‘resilient’ was a term
frequently used by the media, survivors, government officials and various other
stakeholders in the city of Tacloban to describe those affected by the disaster. The
focus of this article is therefore on how this term was articulated and experienced
during this period.
3. Explain the many impacts of climate change on society and Summarize pros and cons
of policy options for carbon abatement ...
Answer: A changing climate thus affects the prerequisites of population health: clean
air and water, sufficient food, natural constraints on infectious disease agents, and the
adequacy and security of shelter. A warmer and more variable climate leads to higher
levels of some air pollutants.

Module on Gene Therapy

ASSIGNMENT
1. Explain how gene therapy works in theory.
ANSWER: Gene therapy is designed to introduce genetic material into cells to
compensate for abnormal genes or to make a beneficial protein. If a mutated gene
causes a necessary protein to be faulty or missing, gene therapy may be able to
 introduce a normal copy of the gene to restore the function of the protein. A gene that
is inserted directly into a cell usually does not function. Instead, a carrier called a vector
is genetically engineered to deliver the gene. Certain viruses are often used as vectors
because they can deliver the new gene by infecting the cell. The viruses are modified so
they can't cause disease when used in people. Some types of virus, such as retroviruses,
integrate their genetic material (including the new gene) into a chromosome in the
human cell. Other viruses, such as adenoviruses, introduce their DNA into the nucleus of
the cell, but the DNA is not integrated into a chromosome.

2. Identify some risks of gene therapy.

Gene therapy has some potential risks. A gene can't easily be inserted directly into your
cells. Rather, it usually has to be delivered using a carrier, called a vector.
The most common gene therapy vectors are viruses because they can recognize certain
cells and carry genetic material into the cells' genes. Researchers remove the original
disease-causing genes from the viruses, replacing them with the genes needed to stop
disease. Gene therapy involves altering the genes inside your body's cells in an effort to
treat or stop disease.

ASSIGNMENT
 Why is gene therapy research so tightly regulated?
Because of genetic engineering have yielded clear benefits with few apparent risks. Few
would question, for example, the value of our now abundant supply of human insulin
produced by genetically engineered bacteria. However, many emerging applications of
genetic engineering are much more controversial, often because their potential benefits
are pitted against significant risks, real or perceived. This is certainly the case for gene
therapy, a clinical application of genetic engineering that may one day provide a cure
for many diseases but is still largely an experimental approach to treatment.

 What is the main ethical concern associated with germ-line gene therapy?
Current gene therapy research has focused on treating individuals by targeting the
therapy to body cells such as bone marrow or blood cells. This type of gene therapy
cannot be passed to a person’s children. Gene therapy could be targeted to egg and
sperm cells (germ cells), however, which would allow the inserted gene to be passed to
future generations. This approach is known as germ line gene therapy.

MULTIPLE CHOICE
At what point can the FDA halt the development or use of gene therapy?
a. on submission of an IND application
b. during clinical trials
c. after manufacturing and marketing of the approved therapy
d. all of the answers are correct
Answer: D
 Module on Nanotechnology
Activities/Assignments:

 Find tertiary prospectuses and industry training organization information about nanotechnology,
or show where similar resources can be found.
ANSWER: Nanotechnology is a common word these days, but many of us don’t realize the
amazing impact it has on our daily lives. According to the United States National
Nanotechnology Initiative, nanotechnology is “science, engineering, and technology conducted
at the nanoscale, which is about 1 to 100 nanometers.” One nanometer is a billionth of a meter,
or 10-9 of a meter. For comparison, a sheet of newspaper is about 100,000 nanometers thick.
Scientists are discovering that atoms and molecules behave differently at the nanoscale.
 Compare nanotechnology technology courses in local and international universities using this
website.
ANSWER: Nanotechnology has recently grown by leaps and bounds to the extent that it has
been game-changing in a broad range of industries from automotive to healthcare and
everything in between. Since almost every aspect of industrial development has somehow its
roots in academia, a vast majority of universities and colleges worldwide have begun to run
specialized programs in nano science and nanotechnology, and  since then they have been
attempting to equip their labs with cutting-edge research facilities and equipment for training a
new generation of skilled nanoscientists, nanotechnologists, and experts to prepare them for
nano-related careers, and to lead the rapidly-growing field of nanotechnology.
 Research the technological knowledge, skills, and qualifications needed by those involved in
nanotechnology industries as compared to the different industries.
ANSWER: Nanotechnology is an interdisciplinary technology of manipulation or self-
assembly of individual atoms, molecules, or molecular clusters into structures to create
materials and devices with control geometry and at least one component below 100 nm
(nanometer) including advanced equipment that allow controlled fabrication,
measurement and visualisation with high resolution. Nanotechnology can work in the
top-down approach (which means reducing the size of the smallest structures to the
nanoscale) or the bottom-up approach (which involves manipulating individual atoms
and molecules into nanostructures and more closely integrates chemistry or biology
with microelectronics).
Module on Biodiversity and Genetically Modified Organism

ACTIVITY:
Can you mention the names of three species of plants and animals/birds found in
your locality and their importance for the residents of your locality? One example has
been done for you.

Answer: A number of species of marine turtles, including the leatherback turtle, are protected, as
are the Philippine crocodile and saltwater crocodile. The islands are home to a diverse array of
reptiles and amphibians. Water monitor lizards (Varanus salvator) of various sorts have been prized
for their skins. Skinks, geckos, and snakes are abundant, and more than 100 species are endemic to
the Philippines.